One of Krisiti Noem’s contractors is under investigation over “pay-to-play” allegations, in the latest blow to the former Homeland Security Secretary.
California Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, launched a probe into five companies that were given “favorable treatment” to receive hundreds of millions of dollars from the Department of Homeland Security during Noem’s tenure.
The companies all appear to be linked to William Walters, a former State Department employee and GOP donor, according to the letter, which was first reported by NOTUS. The companies had never received immigration-related contracts with the federal government until they were awarded them at the highest level under Noem.
In a letter sent to Walters, Garcia accuses Noem and her former aide and alleged lover Corey Lewandowski of awarding the contracts “under opaque contracting conditions.”
“This scandal adds to a pattern of questionable dealings between the Trump Administration and your companies, raising concerns that the President and his inner circle may be using taxpayer dollars and public trust to benefit wealthy donors,” Garcia wrote in the letter.
“Former Secretary Noem and Mr. Lewandowski also awarded lucrative DHS contracts under opaque contracting conditions to other companies for which you are listed as an executive officer, or which share the same addresses as companies founded by you and your associates,” the letter to Walters continued.
Some of the contracts in question were hardly related to the functions of DHS.
The letter states that Valkyrie Aviation Holdings Group, which leased a luxury jet for Noem and Lewandowski’s personal use, is also tied to Walters. Garcia pointed out that Walters is listed as the chief executive officer.
The letter also zeroes in on Salus Worldwide Solutions, of which Walters is also the CEO. Garcia alleged that the company was “directing subcontractors to funnel taxpayer dollars to consultants affiliated with Mr. Lewandowski.”
NBC News previously reported that some potential government contractors had said that they had been asked to give payments to Lewandowski, allegations which he has denied.
Lewandowski denied the newly reported allegations related to Walters, with his spokesperson telling NOTUS that he has “never done business with or been compensated by the companies referred in any way, shape or form.”
In a statement to the Daily Beast, Walters denied having any type of relationship with Lewandowski and called the NBC report a “fabrication.”
“No member of Salus has ever sought or accepted preferential treatment from a federal Department or Agency official in the award of a contract, nor solicited anything of value for anyone from anyone. There is no truth to any of this. We’re proud of our conduct and the services we provide and plan on telling Congress exactly what we do and how we do it,” he said in a statement.
“Let’s see if others are willing to do the same,” the statement continued.
Walters is a big-time donor to pro-Trump causes. During the 2024 presidential election, he donated $10,000 to a super PAC connected with Noem, and he has donated to the pro-Trump America First Policy Institute, according to the Washington Post.
DHS’s contracts under Noem’s leadership have already been under scrutiny after Noem’s former spokesperson, Tricia McLaughlin’s husband, Ben Yoho, benefited from a $220 million no-bid, taxpayer-funded contract that produced border patrol ads prominently featuring Noem.
Yoho’s firm was paid through the ad campaign as a subcontractor, which has raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest.
The timing of the new scandal couldn’t be worse for Noem, as her husband, Bryon Noem, was exposed earlier this week for engaging in a double cross-dressing life.
Bryon’s “busty bimbo” alter ego was exposed earlier this week in a bombshell report by the Daily Mail.
The Mail said it obtained hundreds of messages, involving three separate women, all of whom are tied to his “bimbofication,” a fetish that involves dressing up as a hypersexualized Barbie doll in which a man wears massive fake breasts and skin-tight clothing.
A cam girl who said she had recognized him as a client told the Daily Beast he would pay $20 a minute for her to dominate him via a webcam.
The revelation has raised alarm bells for some national secretary experts, who believed Noem could have been susceptible to blackmail.
Bryon has denied putting U.S. national security at risk by speaking with online adult film stars, but did not deny his bimbo lifestyle.
He said he intends to share his side of the story eventually, telling The New York Times he will talk “at some point,” but “today is not the day. I appreciate your heart.”
